Girl Meets Nurse Maya
by Wllflwr98
Summary: When Cory and Topanga have to unexpectedly leave for Philly for the weekend, Riley spends the night at Maya's house. However, what they both hoped would be a normal sleepover turns out to be much more, as Riley comes down with an unusually nasty cold and Maya is the only one around to take care of her.
1. Chapter 1: The Jacket

"Riley...Riley...Riley Matthews!"

Riley jumped, sleepily lifting her head and slowly gaining remembrance of her surroundings. She felt her eyes pop out of their sockets as she looked the substitute history teacher in the eyes, realizing she had fallen asleep in the middle of class. Again.

"Riley Matthews, I don't know what to do with you.." The substitute teacher said, sighing as she put her hands on her hips. "This is the _second_ _time_ you've fallen asleep in this class, Riley, is there something wrong with you? Do you do this when your father is teaching, too?"

Riley diverted her eyes towards her shoes, feeling her face begin to burn as the entire class had their attention on her. She shamefully shook her head.

"Well, if you really want to sleep _that_ bad, you can sleep in detention. You have permission to take yourself a nice, 1 hour nap with me after class is over." She gave Riley one last exasperated glance as she turned to the whiteboard, restarting her discussion on the Revolution of 1848.

Riley's head collapsed into her hands once the teacher turned around. Gazing at the problems scribbled on the chalkboard, she gave half of her attention to her teacher and half of her attention to keeping herself from relapsing into unconsciousness. She had never been so tired before in school, as she was used to being alert and perky, answering questions and exchanging grins with Maya.

However, since Maya had been suspended for a couple days after a scuffle in the hallways, she had no one to keep her awake. Or maybe she had let her guard down a little too much since her father had the day off.

This drowsiness, however, didn't feel like something that could be cured with a nap. Riley had felt light-headed all day, while simultaneously feeling like someone had tied dumbbells around her ankles and shoulders. Her throat had begun to feel scratchy and sore in the middle of the morning periods, and she had awoken feeling stuffy. And every so often, she would randomly have-

'Yep, here they go again,' Riley thought as cold chills fled up her spine and penetrated the deepest layers of her skin, causing her to uncontrollably shiver like a deranged Chihuahua. She drew her arms closer to her body, clinging to the remainder of body heat she still possessed.

Suddenly, she felt something being laid on her shoulders. Startled, she turned around to see Lucas spreading his jacket on her. He smiled as Riley turned and looked at him.

'Thank you,' Riley mouthed to Lucas, smiling and pulling the jacket over her shoulders.

After class, Riley stayed seated, awaiting the hour of detention that was up next on the list of her hectic, bizarre day. She suddenly remembered Lucas's jacket was still spread across her shoulders as she watched him head for the hallways.

"Lucas!" Riley called, taking off his jacket and holding it out. "Here's your jacket."

Lucas smiled, waving it off. "That's alright, you can keep it for today. You'll be needing it more than me."

One hour went by fast, as Riley took her teacher's advice (while it wasmeant to be sarcastic) and dozed off now and then, even though it didn't give her a single ounce of strength in return.

Unfortunately, it was pouring bullets of rain in NYC, and Riley had no umbrella stored in her backpack. Staring outside at the rainy streets through the glass doors of the school, she was still shivering, her teeth clicking together as she pondered what to do. Cold rain _did_ _not_ sound inviting at the moment, as it would probably just force more goose bumps up onto her skin.

Suddenly, Riley realized that Lucas's jacket was tied around her waist. She ripped it off, remembering how he had said that she would need it more than he would as she stuck her arms into the jacket and flipped the hoodie over head. Boy, was he right!Riley thought to herself with a little smile.

The sky above was packed with black clouds, darkening the streets below. The only lights that broke through the caliginous surroundings were the white headlights of taxis and the red and green traffic lights that reflected in blurry streaks on the flooded roads. Riley dashed for the subway station, maneuvering around people and avoiding tidal waves of water as cars sped through puddles in the road.

Finally collapsing onto a seat on the subway, Riley laid her head back and wildly panted, trying to gather air into her lungs after her marathon through the city. Suddenly, she closed her mouth in embarrassment, realizing her teeth were still chattering and that everyone on the subway could their rapid clicks as her mouth was gaping open.

It didn't matter how tightly she wrapped her arms closer to her body, her shivers and chills were uncontainable. The confusing part was that the temperature was only 53 degrees today, which was very warm for New York City in mid-April, yet Riley felt like her body was chilled to a degrees of -32.

Riley shut her eyes and laid her head back again, hoping the chills would go away by themselves.

Achoo!

Riley broke the silence in the subway as she let out a loud sneeze. She sniffled, drawing in a breath as her nose began to tickle again.

Achoo! ACHOO!

Riley fell back into her seat after the final sneeze, beginning to feel even more drained than before. Running through the streets of New York with chills attacking her body probably wasn't the smartest idea, but it was all she was left with at the time.


	2. Chapter 2: Maya to the Rescue

By the time she exited the subway, Riley was certain she was sick. She had almost sneezed her nose off on the ride to her stop, and Lucas's jacket was now streaked with snot, as it was the only tissue that had been available at the moment. She hesitated in the station as she still heard rain pittering on the streets above her, and her chills had yet to stop.

Riley reached for her phone in her pocket, supposing she could call someone to come rescue her with an umbrella. How about her dad? Nooo, not a good idea. Cory didn't know she had gotten detention yet, and she didn't want to have to face the situation just yet.

Suddenly, her best friend popped into her head.

Riley dialed Maya's number, listening to the rings as she waited for her to pick up.

"Hello?" Maya picked up after a few rings.

"Mayaaaa," Riley groaned. "Come help meeeee..."

Maya chuckled at her friend's dramatic, whiney tone. "Riley, where are you?"

"I'm at the subway station, stuck in the rain."

"Shouldn't you have been home an hour ago?" Maya asked, confusion evident in her tone.

"Well, yeah," Riley sniffled in order to avoid choking on her own snot. "But, I got detention."

"You? Detention?" Maya sounded flabbergasted. "What did you do?"

"I kinda fell asleep during class.." Riley said sheepishly.

Maya chuckled again. "Okay, I'll be there in a few."

Riley settled down on a nearby bench, wrapping Lucas's snotty jacket snugly around her body. She sleepily gazed out into space, listening to the beat of the street drummer a few paces away.

Next thing she knew, she awoke with a start at the sound of a loud _pop!_ She lifted her head to see Maya leaning against an open umbrella, laughing. She had succeeded in startling Riley out of her sleep by loudly and intentionally forcing open the umbrella.

"You ready?" Maya said with a wide grin, trying to calm herself down.

Riley nodded, standing up, throwing her backpack onto her shoulders, and zipping up Lucas's jacket.

"What are you doing with Lucas's jacket?" Maya said, lifting one eyebrow as she watched Riley zip it up.

"I got cold, and he offered it to me." Riley said with a wide, sleepy grin on her face.

Maya smiled back at her, knowing that inside Riley was the happiest girl in New York.

The two ventured through the rain, Maya gripping the umbrella tightly as the wind tried to rip it from her hands. Riley trembled, inching closer to Maya and hoping to snag some of her body heat.

When they finally stepped inside the apartment complex, stomping off the rain and shaking out the umbrella, Maya turned to Riley. Something was definitely different about Riley.

First off, Maya had found her asleep in the midst of a noisy subway station, and she almost never saw Riley napping. Ever. Secondly, she had been sniffling like a determined bloodhound following a rabbit's trail the entire way home, along with a couple of sneezes here and there. Finally, she looked a little pale and abnormally run-down, and her eyes were vacant of their usual ecstatic gleam.

"Riley, look at me." Maya said. She reached for Riley's forehead and gently pressed the back of her hand against it, then drew it back and continued to shake out the umbrella. "_You_ are sick."

Riley sniffled again, stirring up a sneeze by doing so.

Achoo!

"No, I'm not." Riley said stuffily.

"Yes, you are." Maya grinned at her friend's useless attempt to cover up the fact that she was under the weather.

Achoo!

Maya gave a smirk to her friend that said, 'I told you so..'

"Alright, fine," Riley said, smiling as she sniffled. "You caught me red-handed."

"More like red-nosed, Rudolph." Maya teased, eyeing Riley's irritated nose.

"Thanks for taking me home, Maya." Riley said.

"Your welcome." Maya said cooly, closing the umbrella. "Take care of yourself, alright?"

"Alright..." Riley smiled, heading for the elevator.

Riley took her key out of her backpack as she reached her apartment, unlocking the door and slowly twisting it open. She recoiled as she waited for her parents to bombard her, asking her where she had been and what the heck had caused her to get detention.

Oddly, the apartment was silent and barren. No Topanga hovering over the stove cooking dinner, no Cory sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper, no Auggie hard at work in his coloring books. Just silence.

"Mom? Dad?" Riley called out.

Riley discovered a note on the kitchen table and her sleepover bag sitting in the floor. She picked up the note, examining her mom's hand-writing.

"Riley, your father and I will be out of town until tomorrow afternoon; we had to help out a friend in Philly on very short notice. Auggie is down the hall, spending the night at Ava's, and I figured you would want to have a sleepover with Maya, so I packed your stuff. If you need anything and Maya's mom isn't home (she'll probably be with the nightshift at the diner), you can go to Ava's mom or call us. I love you!"

Riley sighed as she put down the note. She really wasn't feeling well, and she knew Topanga was the only person who could make her feel better. But, Topanga wasn't here, so she would just have to make-do without her.

Riley put her backpack and Lucas's jacket in her room, then realized she should probably search for some cold medicine. Heading into the bathroom, she did a double-take as she noticed herself in the mirror: she looked awfully pale.

Riley hoped and prayed that there was some medicine in the cabinet as she rummaged around, but was only able to fish out a box of Band-aids. Sighing, she placed it back in the cabinet, and as more cold chills flooded Riley's nervous system, she figured she should at least grab a thermometer.

Finally, ready to leave, Riley threw her bag over her shoulder and headed out the door. If she couldn't have her mom by her side when she was sick, Maya was definitely the next best thing she could have.


	3. Chapter 3: Meet Nurse Maya

Knock-knock-knock. Riley rapped on Maya's door and waited for someone to answer.

Maya appeared behind the door, holding an apple in one hand. "Riley? What're you doing here, I thought you were sick." she said with a mouthful of apple.

"I am, but my parents had to go down to Philly at the last moment. Could I stay with you?" Riley said.

Maya opened the door a little more, leaning in the doorway as she continued to crunch on her apple. "Where's Auggie?"

"He's staying with Ava and her family." Riley said.

"Don't you think you would be better with them?" Maya said.

Riley was thrown off guard; usually her friend would let her inside in a heartbeat. "What do you mean?"

"Riley_,_ I'm only thirteen, my mom is working the night shift tonight, and you need someone who can actually take care of you. Someone with experience and knowledge when it comes to-."

Achoo!

Riley responded with a sneeze, and Maya threw out her hand, finishing her sentence with, "-that!"

"Maya, you don't need to take care of me!" Riley said. "It's just a little cold, I'll be fine!"

Maya sighed, stepping aside and letting Riley in. Riley trudged to the couch, dumping her stuff beside it and collapsing onto the cushions. "All I need is a teensie nap, then we can hang out. It'll be just like a sleepover, I promise."

Riley laid back, resting her head on the arm of the sofa and sighing. This deep intake of breath suddenly triggered a new symptom for Riley: she began to go into a coughing fit, her coughs very wet and forceful as she leaned forward and covered her mouth. Once she finally caught her breath, she sheepishly grinned at Maya.

"See? I can handle this." Riley cleared her throat as her voice sounded raspy and congested.

Maya sighed as she closed the door. "If you think you're OK, then, what the heck.."

Riley hung her arm over the side of the couch, unzipping her bag and feeling around for the thermometer. She triumphantly held it out for Maya to see, showing her that she could manage all by herself by checking her own temperature. Sticking it in her mouth, she laid back and counted the beeps as it calculated her temperature.

After it gave one final beep, Riley pulled it out and squinted at the little, digital print: 101.3.

Maya, who was sprawled out in a recliner a couple feet away, frowned as her friend's face registered concern. "What's the matter?" She rolled out of the chair and looked over Riley's shoulder, reading the thermometer. "Ooh, boy..."

Maya sat on the arm of the sofa and carefully took the thermometer from Riley's hands, then laid her own hand against Riley's forehead again to make sure the temperature was correct. Unfortunately, Riley still felt hot to the touch. Yep, the thermometer didn't seem like a liar to her..

Maya definitely didn't think it was good for Riley to be up on her feet, taking care of herself without anyone's help. While she didn't know much about nursing others, she _had_ picked up a little bit of experience watching her mom care for her when she had been sick in the past.

"Alright, Riles, meet Nurse Maya." Maya announced after thinking through the situation.

"Maya, it's okay, I can-" Riley began to protest, sitting up before Maya interrupted her.

"No, Riley. I've never heard of the patient taking care of himself, have you?" Maya gently pushed her friend back down, then placed the thermometer on the coffee table. "Besides, I think this is more than the average cold."

"So, what do you recommend we do, Nurse Maya?" Riley sighed, looking up at her friend before relapsing into another coughing fit.

"Well," Maya helped Riley sit up as she continued to cough. "You can't even take a deep breath without hacking up crap, so I guess I'll just listen to sound of your breathing and see how much crud there really is in there? That's something doctors do, I think.."

Maya pressed her ear up to Riley's back, keeping one hand on her chest so that she could feel how much crud there was inside it when she breathed in. "Okay, breath in..."

Riley inhaled, but before Maya could even hear anything inside, Riley began to cough again. Unsure of what to do in the meantime, Maya awkwardly patted Riley's back.

"You good?" Maya said when Riley began to quit coughing.

Riley nodded as she cleared her throat.

"Okay, let's give it another go. This time, make an effort to not cough."

Riley took in a breath, ignoring the tickle in her throat that insisted she should cough. Maya winced as she heard and felt a lot of junk stirring up inside Riley's chest. "Okay, breath out."

Riley exhaled, almost immediately coughing again afterwards.

"Sounds like there's a lot of crap inside..." Maya said. "So, uh, I guess the only thing to do would be to cough it all up?"

Riley groaned, her head falling back onto the arm of the sofa. "If I keep this up, I'm gonna cough out my actual lungs."

Maya felt sorry for Riley as she watched her lay back, her body jolting as she continued to cough a little. She sympathetically patted her friend on the shoulder, discovering in the process of doing so that Riley was shivering like crazy.

"Gosh, you must be freezing. Lemme get you a blanket."

Pulling a blanket and a pillow out of the hall closet, she tossed Riley the pillow, unfurled the plush, white blanket and spread it across Riley. Riley gave a weak, grateful grin, pulling the blanket up to her chin and snuggling in comfortably.

Maya tried to think of what other remedies her mom would use on her when she was sick. She vaguely recalled something about a damp wash cloth draped across her forehead? Maybe that was supposed to make the fever go down or something? She shrugged, unable to think of anything else since she was rarely sick.

Maya grabbed a wash cloth, rinsing it under cold water and wringing it out. She scooted an ottoman next to the sofa and sat on the edge of it, carefully folding the washcloth in half and placing it over Riley's forehead.

"Riley," Maya bent over and looked through Riley's bag. "Do you have some medicine or something in here?"

"No, I couldn't find any at home." Riley said, sounding more nasally than ever as she cleared her throat a little.

Maya looked up as Riley began to cough again; something had to be done to help that wet cough. Glancing at the clock on the microwave in the kitchen, she saw that it was already 5:15 PM. "You up for some chicken noodle soup? It's my special recipe..."

Riley turned her head and glared at Maya with a little smirk. "You mean Campbell's special recipe?"

"Yes, I mean Campbell's special recipe." Maya said with a grin. "So, yay or nay?"

"No, thanks, Maya, I'm not very hungry.." Riley said.

Maya frowned. "Come on, Riley, warm soup will help your throat feel better." She sympathetically looked down at her friend. "I have crackers..." she said in a descending, tempting tone.

Riley sighed. "Okay, fine."

Maya grinned, patting Riley on the arm as she headed into the kitchen.


	4. Chapter 4: Desperate Measures

The rest of the evening was full of frequent coughing fits and multiple temperature checks as Maya's nursing skills were put to the test. The soup she had served didn't seem to have any positive effects on Riley, given the fact that her cough had actually begun to sound worse over the course of the evening. As her fever increased, the normal Riley began to disappear, her usually perky self fading to unresponsive exhaustion.

Frankly, the new Riley sorta freaked Maya out.

Maya sat in the recliner across from Riley, eyeing her anxiously as she uneasily slept on the sofa, going from rolling onto her side, sliding onto her belly, and finally kicking off the blanket.

Maya sighed. "Is your fever bothering you, Riles?" She hopped off the recliner, deciding to take Riley's temperature again.

As she sat on the ottoman beside the couch, waiting for the final beep to sound, Maya realized how miserable Riley looked. Her cheeks were flushed to a warm, red pigment, her eyes looked really weak, and she struggled to hold in a cough as the thermometer continued to take her temperature. Maya took it out at the sound of the last beep, starting to feel antsy as Riley's temperature had risen to 103.4.

Maya felt helpless as she listened to Riley violently cough beside her. She had absolutely no idea what she should do now, as Riley's condition was surpassing her nursing skills. She reached for Riley's hand and squeezed it, knowing that if she couldn't nurse her into good health, she could at least provide comfort for her.

That night passed by very slowly for the two of them, as Riley was up half the time coughing and Maya was pacing the apartment in between taking Riley's temperature. Finally, at 3:20 AM, Maya decided she needed to get someone's advice, especially since Riley had just coughed up so much crud that she accidentally threw up on the floor.

"I'm sorry, Maya, I've kept you up half the night.." Riley said hoarsely as she watched Maya get on her hands and knees beside her, scrubbing the vomit out of the carpet.

"Riley, quit being ridiculous. It's not your fault at all, I _need_ to be up with you." Maya said, putting the cleaning supplies down and sitting on the ottoman beside Riley. She pulled her phone out of her pocket, typing in her password as she began to ask Riley, "What's your mom's phone number?"

"That won't work. My mom usually turns her cell phone off at night." Riley responded.

"Well, then, where do you think they are in Philly?"

"They always stay at my dad's parent's house. You can use their home phone number. Here, I'll dial the numbers."

"No way am I gonna let you touch my phone. You're sick." Maya said with a grin, pulling her phone behind her head and out of Riley's reach.

Riley weakly smiled. "I'll tell you, then."

Maya dialed the numbers as she listened to Riley recite them, then began to await an answer as the rings began to sound.


	5. Chapter 5: A Ring at 3:00 AM

Amy Matthews hurried down the stairs in her bathrobe, glancing at her watch as she wondered who would call at 3:30 in the morning. Picking up the receiver, she eagerly waited to see if she recognized the caller as she said, "Hello?"

Maya began to feel nervous, as she had never even talked to who she assumed was Mrs. Matthews in her entire life. "Hi, is this Mrs. Matthews?"

Amy couldn't register the tone of the voice on the other line; it sounded like a young, teenage girl's voice, around the age of her granddaughter Riley. "Yes, who is this?"

"I'm Maya Hart, your granddaughter Riley is my best friend. Is Topanga Matthews there?"

Amy still couldn't figure out why in the world she was calling in the middle of the night, but she was beginning to feel that it was an emergency. "Yes, she is, hold on a sec."

Amy descended the stairs, retreating to the end of the hall and knocking on the door of Cory's old bedroom. She heard the rustle of bedsheets from the other side as someone threw back the bedcovers and headed for the door. Cory opened the door, squinting at his mom as he stood in the doorway in his striped pajamas.

"Cory, someone from New York is asking to speak to Topanga. She says her name is Maya Hart? Does that sound familiar?"

Cory received the phone from his mom, turning to his wife with a confused expression. "It's Maya, she says she wants to talk to you."

Topanga's stomach lurched, startled that Maya would be calling at this time of night. She reached for the phone, her voice rising with concern as she said, "Maya? What's wrong, is everything OK?"

"Hey, Mrs. Matthews, I'm really sorry to be calling at such a late hour, but Riley's sick." Maya stood up from the ottoman, beginning to slowly stroll back and forth as she continued the conversation. "She's had a wet cough and a high fever since late this afternoon, and they've both gotten worse as the evening's gone on."

By this time Alan had joined the others, standing behind Cory and Amy as they stood in the doorway, watching Topanga's expression change as she shifted in the bed. "How high is it? Do you have a cold washcloth on her forehead?"

"I tried that, but it didn't seem to make a difference. Her fever is over 103." Maya knew that sounded very bad as she heard it come from her mouth; it made her sound irresponsible and definitely seemed to bring disgrace to her nursing skills. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Matthews. I tried to keep it down as best as I could, but nothing seemed to help and we don't have any medicine here."

Topanga got up from the bed and began to put on her robe as she tried to assure Maya. "Maya, it's alright, it's not your fault whatsoever. We'll go ahead and leave now, we should be back in New York in about 2 hours, OK?"

Maya settled back down on the ottoman beside Riley, beginning to feel a little relieved as Riley's parents were coming back. "Okay, thank you, Mrs. Matthews. And I'm sorry I bothered you."

"No, Maya, you did the right thing in calling us. Just try to keep her temperature as low as you can in the meantime."

Topanga hung up the phone and scrambled around the room for their strewn clothes and bathroom supplies. "Cory, we need to go ahead and leave. Riley's pretty sick, and there's only so much a thirteen year old can do to help."

Cory followed his wife's lead, gathering up stuff in their bathroom. "How high is her fever?" Cory said, tossing deodorant and make-up into their toiletries bag.

"Maya said it's over 103, but she's tried all she can." Topanga said, forcing a suitcase full of jumbled-up clothes closed.

"I'll go pack you guys some breakfast bars for the ride home." Amy said, disappearing with Alan downstairs.

A few minutes later, Topanga and Cory loaded their stuff into the car, thanked Amy for the breakfast bars, and rolled out of the driveway, waving goodbye to Amy and Alan standing on the back porch.

Meanwhile, Maya on the ottoman beside Riley, staring out into space as her knee bounced up and down nervously. She could hear Riley beside her continuing to cough; it sounded more wet than ever.

"Oh, Maya," Riley wheezed as she finally caught her breath. "I feel like crap."

Maya couldn't take seeing Riley feel so awful anymore; she squeezed onto the couch with her, Riley laying her head on Maya's shoulder. "I know, Riley, I'm sorry. Guess I'm not that good of a nurse, huh?"

"No, of course you are. You've done everything you can, this virus is just too much to manage." Riley glanced up at her friend with a small smile, before closing her eyes in another attempt to get some sleep.

Maya laid her head back and closed her eyes, too. "Thanks, Riles."


	6. Chapter 6: The Matthews Return

A couple hours later, Topanga and Cory entered the apartment, their hearts melting when they found Maya and Riley asleep together on the couch. Topanga softly sat on the ottoman, smiling at the two for a moment before waking them up.

"Maya, Riley.." she whispered, stowing Riley's messy hair behind her ear and placing her hand against her forehead.

Riley stirred, her eyes blinking open as she began to wake up. She softly smiled at her mom, then began to cough a little as she sat up. "Hey, Mom.."

"Hey, sweetie," Topanga squeezed in between Maya and Riley, spreading her arms around them both. Riley laid her head against her mom's shoulder, Topanga softly kissing her on top of the head.

"Hey, Mrs. Matthews," Maya said sleepily. "Thanks for heading back so early."

"Thank _you_ for taking care of Riley. She's very fortunate to have such a caring, concerned best friend." Topanga smiled at Maya, gently patting her on the shoulder.

"I know she would have done the same if it were me." Maya grinned over at Riley, who beamed right back at her.


End file.
